Injection apparatus



Feb. 2, 1954 E. A. MAY

INJECTION APPARATUS YK r w ANA NAN Filed Sept. 29, 1949 Evi( Patented Feb. 2, 1954 ZiGG'LS'F' INJEQTIN APPARATUS.;

Edwim My; Ridgewood; NE- J3, assignor" to or allergy-techniques; andi-for intramuscular inl0" 'Toi gjiidethe movementsof tiiepston'an'd to jections; suchpapparatuss'b'eingg capablejof ready loadingjfand zuseby an operator `Withfthe expenditure-of a minimum amount of time and eiort.

A further object is that of furnishing an assemmarilyintended:'tof'operate;'Withoutgitbeinginece f 20"" proper supportadjacent the' inner? enl'l of the Figi Preisl a-iragmentary detail-'offaportionoif 35` the assembly showing the same 'in'enlargedrseale: aridi@ Fig. 5f-is=-aisectionallside-viewof'an alternative@ form 'of fapparatus-.'l

f Primarily referringto'ligs.Lv 1"to'4, the numeral?. 4()

1949, SerialNo. 118,701

w1. nemesi theaotzatorli'. The opposteendofsleeve 222 has attached' tov it th`e member I5' Thus', tis:

, apparentthat as the actuator; or knOUiSShited bly'ofrthisatyp'efwhichi'Wi'll-jaembodyarelatively few 15"" to,.reciprocat`e .pistonilaguidingaction .Willbe establishedbetween .tlieLinner` facev o fK memberi i and. the .outer faceofjsleeve 22 -'as iwell asbfe'ttveen 1 the` outervr face'.k of. cylirld'er.v H', and." the. bjore of." member ISI The. latter assembly' will establish? apparatus-v Acorresponding 'supportfadjjacentthe outer: endofLth'e.. alppitratusv is conveniently .iure n'i-sh'edby securinggto `tlerearen'd A-of .cylinder i T a .threadedvoollarf .2 B'Zwhieh'mountsQa correspond#- ing-lyj threaded cap ori sleeve .24 thesefpartsbeing; adjustableuby, virtue .off` their! threaded engagement@A A sealing: elementi. 25l may b'e... disposed.' within'rthercapvand slidablycontactlthe piace! of.' rod 20 to thus furnish a seal forV the`latterl.. The- `outer face. cheap Zemaybe forrnedJ/vith onefor more ig-rooy'es..-2B,f to provide. by-passesf. fr air. which f. wouldM otherwise be.v entrapfpedeY Adjust-, ment of*.thesealorpacking 5:.may conveniently.' be-f obtenir-led.;by,V forming.; both member le and.'V sleevedZA-Withealigned;y openings 'LY opein'ng` 28s nutty; r also bet formed., in f. capl 2.4 as l shown' in.v Fig.;` 1... Accordinglysizthepartsare disassembled.4

totfsome-extent aesslfi-itable.timplementu may introduced'- through. openings.` 21 :anat 2 lito retain.. "theecapyagainstfrotation.;. Thereupon by turningY plugnl hand Acylinder l'i with respect-toemember I;.jco1lar 23 .vmayrbe projected :for retracted with.. respect to :can s2 Lto obtain. the.. desired adir-lsu ment of. sealf25; l

Tliuspin.the.structureshown.in Figs.V 1k to' 4,1, arrassembly is furnishedwh'ioh v.involvesa medic-v amentrreceiving'. cylinder' and a'pis'tonffor' expe11ing'. medicament; therefrom This" cyiirrderj' .may be'll'ed With medicament' (afterdesiredt ste'rilizatiorrofthe"parts)*byimmersirrgn thefouter" end.: oftl'ie' in medicamenty and retraeting'g thepston Under thes'eecircumstances nozzleLL i 3 i may, or may not',"-be-re1novedff'accordihgtofthe= `conveniencelofiftliewuser: t any1' eventia substantiaiiy I4perfil:ameriteassemblyaissfurnisliede the;

detailed operation of which will be hereinafter` described.

Under certain conditions, it may be desirable to furnish an apparatus of this design in which the medicament will be contained in a pre-filled ampule which, after operation of the parts, may be discarded. Such an apparatus has been shown in Fig. in which the numeral 29 indicates the knob or actuator attached to the rear end of rod 30 and which also mounts a guiding sleeve or element 3| slidably bearing against the inner face of the holding member or tube 32. The outer end of member 32 mounts a plug 33 presenting a Contact or bearing surface 34 and supports a nozzle 35 formed with a discharge orifice 36. These parts thus generally correspond to the parts heretofore described in connection with Figs. 1 to 4.

However, in lieu of the cylinder l1 an ampule or cartridge 31 is employed into which the rod 30 may be projected. The interior of this cartridge contains liquid medicament. Its rear end is closed by a piston stopper 33. Its forward end may be closed by a rupturableor frangible seal 39. The inner end of nozzle 35 is preferably pointed so as to effect the rupture of seal 39 as the parts are fully seated.- To support the ampule or cartridge a tube 40 may be provided which receives the same; the clearancebetween these parts having, for the purposes of illustration,

been somewhat exaggerated. In common with the structure shown in the preceding figures a cushioning unit 4l may be provided adjacent the inner face of plug 33.

Sleeve 3| mounts adjacent its inner end a stop unit 42 which limits retraction of the sleeve and the parts associated therewith. Such limiting or stopping action may occur incident to engagement of the unit l2 with a collar 43 encircling tube 4G adjacent its inner end and fixed against movement with respect to the same. This collar may have outer threads mounting the cap 44 which, in common with the previous structure contains a seal 45 slidablyengaging the rod 30. The end of cap 44 may terminate in a nut portion so that the seal may be adjusted or ten-l sioned as desired. In advance of this seal a stop element 46 is disposed which bears against the rear end of the ampule 31 to limit movement of the latter.

In an apparatus of this type it is apparent that plug 33 may be dismounted. Thereafter anampule or cartridge 31 may be disposed within the bore of tube 40; it being understood that the actuator 29 and its associated parts should be fully retracted during this loading operation. When now plug 33 is seated the pointed inner end of nozzle 35 will penetrate seal 39 to establish communication between the interior of the ampule and the bore of the nozzle. The parts may be so proportioned that during the nal seating operation of the plug the bore of the nozzle is completely filled with medicament. Under these circumstances actuator 29 may be projected to expel the medicament. Thereupon plug 33 may be dismounted and the spent ampule may be withdrawn and discarded. Upon the rod 30 again being retracted a new ampule may be projected until it engages stop 46 and the entire cycle may be repeated. In common with the cap 24 of Figs. 1 to 4 a groove 41 may be formed in cap i4 to permit a by-passing of the air as the parts are reciprocated.

In both forms of apparatus it is preferred to employ a cannula to provide tubes such as I1, 31 and 40. The clearance between tube I1 and rod 20 should not be over .001". Such a nt may be readily obtained by, for example, rubbing the piston with emery cloth or other suitable material. The orifices i4 and 36 may be from .004" to .008 in diameter. Where desired they may incorporate lesser or greater diameters. The piston-ampule clearance should also preferably' not bein excess .of .001. Conveniently the holding members I0 and 32 may be formed of 1/2 stock. For ordinary purposes the over all length of the unit may be from six to seven inches. This again may be varied as heretofore pointed out.

The following table will generally outline the characteristics of the apparatus. The first line denes in inches plunger diameter and the second line plunger areaY in square inches. The third line shows the pressures per square inch developed in response to the exertion of a 10 pound thrust. The fourth line shows the strokev in inches necessary in a 1/4 cc. unit while the fth line shows such stroke in connection with a l cc. apparatus. The sixth line defines the gauge of the cannula which should be employed in the different forms to provide the desired result. Thus:

042 046 054 062 071 085 00139 00173 00229 00307 00395 00566 7, 200 5, 800 4, 360 3, 250 2, 540 l, 770 ll. 00 8. 82 6. 66 4. 98 3. 86 2. 70

example, for allergy work where a dose of thatA amount is to be administered. As is obvious the instrument may have greater or smaller capacities than those mentioned. In a 1/4 cc. instrument where the plunger diameter is, for example, .054 or .062", pressures of 4360 pounds per square inch and 3250 pounds per square inch respectively are achieved with a 10 pound thrust being exerted on the actuator. The corresponding strokes in such Vinstruments would be 6.66" and 4.98" respectively (no allowance for overload being included). y y

In intradermal or allergy work, it is presently proposed to employ minimum pressures of 2000 pounds per square inch. In intramuscular injections it is proposed to employ not less than 3000 pounds per square inch. The injection orice would preferably begon the order of from .004 to .008". If largerorices are employed then it is highly desirable to utilize an instrument having a long stroke. In lthis connection it will be understood that withra small orice a consequently restricted iow will result and the hand In both forms of apparatus it willV be appreciated that the assembly is initially loadedwith medicament. In the structure of Figs. 1 to 4 after such loading has been resorted to the plungermay be slightly projected sothat any air within the cylinder Will be discharged. In the structure of Fig. 5 the elimination of any entrapped air may occur as the nozzle assembly is finally positioned. In both cases the nozzle may extend beyond the supporting flange to a lesser extent than has been illustrated, in which case the supporting parts I2 and 35 will cooperate with the skin surface to prevent lateral displacement. Of course the discharge end of the nozzle may be spaced from the skin although this is not desirable. In any event, with the projection of the piston by exerting thrust against the actuator the desired pressures will be created and the medicament will be injected through the epidermis without having to employ a skin-piercing needle.

Thus, among others, the several objects of the invention as speciiically aforenoted are achieved. Obviously numerous changes in construction and rearrangement of the parts might be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention as dened by the claims.

I claim:

1. An injection apparatus comprising an exterior supporting member, an actuator, a piston rod secured to said actuator and projectible into said member, a tube also secured to said actuator to be movable therewith, said tube slidably engaging the interior of said member to assist in guiding the movement of the rod within the latter, an assembly iixed with respect to said member and slidably engaging said rod, said assembly being formed with an air by-pass whereby air may flow from one to the other side of said assembly within said tube.

2. A hypodermic injection apparatus including in combination a member to be grasped, means providing a medicament chamber, said chamber and member each comprising elements tubular in section and said member being concentrically disposed and spaced with respect to the outer wall dening said chamber, a tube having its inner end projectible into said space and slidably bearing against the inner face of said member, an actuator member mounted by the outer tube end at a point beyond. said member and a rod connected to said actuator and projectible through said chamber to expel medicament therefrom. y

3. A hypodermic injection apparatus including in combination a member to be grasped, means providing a medicament chamber, said chamber and member each comprising elements tubular in section and said member being concentrically disposed and spaced with respect to the outer wall defining said chamber, a tube having its inner end projectible into said space and slidably bearing against the inner face of said member, an actuator member mounted by the outer tube end at a point beyond said member, a rod connected to said actuator and projectible through said chamber to expel medicament therefrom, the inner face of said tube being spaced from the outer face of the element dening said chamber and means carried by said tube and slidably bearing against the outer face of said element to guide the parts.

4. A hypodermic injection device including in combination an actuating knob, a sleeve, a piston rod, both said rod and sleeve being secured against movement with respect to said knob, said sleeve encircling and being spaced from said rod,

and slidably supporting the same, a tube defining a medicament-receiving chamber secured against movement with respect to said outer member and disposed within the same, a supporting collar carried by said tube towards that end which is adjacent said knob, a stop member fixedly carried by said sleeve adjacent its opposite end, said stop member slidably encircling said tube and being engageable with said supporting collar when said knob is moved away from said outer member and said rod being projectible through said tube and being slidably supported by said collar.

5. A hypodermic injection device including in combination an actuating knob, a sleeve, a piston rod, both said rod and sleeve being secured against movement with respect to said knob, said sleeve encircling and being spaced from said rod, an outer tubular member encircling said sleeve and slidably supporting the same, a tube denning a medicament-receiving chamber secured against movement with respect to said outer member and disposed within the same, a supporting collar carried by said tube towards that end Which is adjacent such knob, a stop member fixedly carried by said sleeve adjacent its opposite end, said stop member slidably encircling said tube and being engageable with said supporting collar when said knob is moved away from said outer member, a seal associated with said collar, means cooperable with said collar and seal to constrict the latter and said rod being projectible through said tube and having slidable engagement with said seal.

6. An injection device as specied in claim 4 in which said tube comprises an ampule having a great length relative to its diameter, the rod is of a substantially equal length and the actuator knob constitutes the sole projection means for said rod, a nozzle through which medicament is discharged and means for supporting said nozzle with respect to said device at a point opposite that at which said knob is disposed.

'7. A hypodermic injection device as specied in claim 6 in which said nozzle includes an outer end extending away from said knob and an inner end extending towards said ampule, said inner end providing a rupturing surface for engagement with a seal associated with said ampule.

EDWIN A. MAY.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,615,136 Raison Jan. 18, 1927 1,783,956 Cook Dec. 9, 1930 2,258,863 Reynolds Oct. 14, 1941 2,322,244 Lockhart June 22, 1943 2,322,245 Lockhart June 22, 1943 2,380,534 Lockhart July 31, 1945 2,398,544 Lockhart Apr. 16, 1946 2,431,406 Lasersohn Nov. 25, 1947 OTHER REFERENCES Notice sur Quelques Nouveaux Instruments et Appareils de Chirurgie Fabriques par I-I. Galante, Paris, I-I. Galante et Ce. Fabricants dinstruments de chirurgie, 1866, pp. 43 and 44. (A copy is in the Army Medical Library, Washington, D. C.) 

